Lady Gaga is one of the world’s most popular singers, but when she studied musical theater at New York University, her classmate Carly Waddell from Bachelor Nation was “not a fan.”
They attended NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in 2005, and the reality star, 38, recalled how the 13-time Grammy winner, 37, annoyed students with her music while they were eating.
“You would eat lunch in a dance studio and there was a piano, and she would sit at the piano every single day and just play and sing Wicked at the top of her lungs every day,” Waddell said during a Monday, November 6, interview on Jason Tartick’s “Trading Secrets” podcast. “And we were all just trying to eat lunch. It was break time, and we were all forced to listen to her.”
Waddell appeared in season 19 of The Bachelor as well as seasons 2 and 3 of Bachelor in Paradise. She won season 3 and accepted the proposal of Evan Bass. They married in 2017 and divorced after separating in December 2020.
Waddell admitted Gaga was talented, but she was not in the mood to hear her sing during lunchtime.
“I just wanted to eat my sandwich,” Waddell continued. “And so, I used to just eat in the hallway because she was driving me crazy.”
Gaga is known for her unique fashion, and in 2011, she was honored by the Council of Fashion Designers of America with the Fashion Icon award. However, when they were classmates, Waddell was not impressed with her style.
“She would wear these really tight leotards,” Waddell remembered, “and her boobs were just, like, coming out. She’s so ridiculous.”
Despite her criticism, Waddell also praised Gaga’s music in college.
“She was good at everything, but she was better at her own stuff,” her classmate recalled. “She was down at the piano, wailing her own tunes … she’s a genius.”
Not everyone is annoyed by Gaga’s love for Broadway musicals. Following Monday’s podcast episode, original Wicked star Kristin Chenoweth took to X (formerly Twitter) to praise the “Born This Way” artist for singing songs from the hit show at NYU. “I’m ready to sing FOR GOOD with our girl Gaga,” she tweeted on Wednesday, November 8, referring to the show’s emotional act two duet between Elphaba and Glinda, “For Good.”
Both students eventually dropped out of the Tisch School of the Arts. Gaga left after one year to pursue her music career, while Waddell transferred to the University of Oklahoma, where she earned a B.A. in fine arts. After beginning her entertainment career in reality television, she now hopes for success as a pop-country singer.
Gaga became an instant success with her debut album, The Fame, in 2008. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Album and won Best Electronic/Dance Album.
The third single, “LoveGame,” was certified triple-platinum. The A Star Is Born actress later recalled that she wrote the song during her freshman year in college.
“I have never told anyone this before, but my song ‘LoveGame’ was actually written in NYU’s library,” she told Ryan Seacrest in a radio interview in February 2017.
The iconic entertainer, born Stefani Germanotta, said she was doing homework, and when she saw a very attractive man, she was inspired to compose a tune about her sexual fantasy.
“I started writing and writing, and before I knew it, the security guard was telling me I either had to leave or move down to the basement,” Gaga recalled. “By that time, I had been writing for hours, but I knew it was one of my favorite songs I had ever composed.”
Gaga also admitted to Seacrest, 48, that she had sex many times in the library bathrooms.
“It wasn’t just me — everyone was doing it,” the singer said while laughing. “I would sit there in the library, typing away, and some guy or girl would look at me. We would exchange that nod that everyone does, and the next thing you know, we are going at it in the bathroom.”
Gaga added that the spontaneous hookups came naturally to her. “I honestly loved the thrill of it, and some would say that I was just born this way,” she quipped.
